Sol Kadhi

"A Konkani delicacy", is how I was introduced to this dish. This is made in the Kokan region of Maharashtra in India. It has ingredients found in the region, namely coconut. Traditionally the coconut is scraped and then milk is extracted from the coconut. Since that it quite a tedious process, the dish is not frequently made and earns the title of a delicacy. I actually drank it only once in India and had not liked it then. It was store bought and very likely stale.
The first time I had it in the US, I loved it. It has a slightly sour taste and the creaminess of the milk balances this perfectly. The garlic pieces and chilles add the perfect bite to this. Now it may be a tedious dish to make from scratch, but if you can buy canned coconut milk, this is a great appetizer which can be made in under 30 minutes.

Ingredients
1 can coconut milk
3-4 kokan/amsul pieces
2 cloves garlic finely chopped
2 tsps clarified butter
4-5 curry leaves (kadhi patta)
1/8 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
1-2 green chillies to taste
salt to taste
approximately 2 cups water

Method
Soak the amsul/kokam in 1 cup of warm water. Keep it aside. In a pot pour the coconut milk. Add 1 cup of water to the coconut milk, and stir. To this add the kokam extract water. In another small pan, heat ghee. To this add the cumin seeds. Once they start to pop, add the curry leaves, garlic and chillies. Take it off the heat once the garlic is golden brown. Cool the ghee mixture to room temperature. Add this to the coconut milk with the kokam. Stir. Add salt to taste. Heat this till it boils. Serve warm or cold per your taste. Makes a great soup and an appetizer.

Tips
Cut the garlic into small pieces that you would like to chew on while drinking the soup/kadhi. Make sure that the ghee has cooled down else the solids and water will separate. Do not substitute ghee with oil.